The Curse Within the Human
by Rozanna
Summary: As the Sanzo ikkou takes a rest in the middle of a forest, a youkai woman appears and starts to attack them. As they knock her out, they take her in, and she explains that she's not a youkai. Instead...she explains something different. Why does Sanzo have
1. Disaster Behind the Rain

_-Chapter 1-_

_Disaster Behind the Rain_

"Thanks." Said Canon. He turned to smile at his drunken partner: Michelle. She had short brown, straight hair; and hazel eyes. Canon was registering for a hotel room, to get in bed. He, too, was drunk. Michelle touched his black hair, staring into his beautiful blue eyes. She closed her eyes slowly and rested her head on his chest; Canon put his hand on her back, rubbing it gently. "Ma'am, can you take us to our room? I'm afraid we won't be able to make it there."

The owner gave him a nod, took they key, and walked up the stairs to lead them to their room.

As they walk upstairs, the owner lends Canon the key, wished them a goodnight and locked the door. Canon put the key on the desk and turned around, seeing Michelle standing in front of the window. The moonlight shining on her so-perfect body. The good thing was that it's a full moon tonight.

Canon smiled as she smiled back, he walked up to her, standing with her in the moonlight. He ran his fingers through her hair, and put his lips on hers. Both are drunk, but they had control over their hormones. As the kiss deepened, they both broke away slowly away from the kiss, the moonlight shining into their eyes, revealing the true colors.

Michelle smiled, and dragged him to bed, and laid on top of him, kissing with lust and passion, and he did the same. After a few minutes, all of their clothes were off, and that's when Michelle started to growl and dig her nails into his upper arms, making it bleed a little.

"Oh, being a little rough now, are we?" Canon teased.

When Michelle lifted her head up to meet his eyes, Canon noticed something different about her: Her eyes changed to golden eyes, and hair was longer, down to her butt, and hair nails have grown rather quickly; she was transforming into a demon.

Michelle dug her nails deeper into his arm, making Canon wench in pain as he tried to struggle to get her off of him. Her growl became deeper as she tried to fight back, lifting up her claws to deliver the final blow.

"Arrgh!"

Blood splattered everywhere when she clawed his chest. She quickly jumped off him, staring at his cut-up chest and stomach that was made by her claws, the helpless victim. She stared at the blood that was on her hands and nails, and smirked.

By then, she jumped through the window, breaking the window glass, looking for her next victim…and leaving her clothes behind.

_(Where the Sanzo party is)_

The Sanzo party was stuck on the road, because once again, Hakuryu was sleeping. Hakkai, Gojyo, Goku, and Sanzo were all sitting in the jeep, waiting for him to wake up. The road they were on was in the middle of the forest, so it wouldn't be surprising if they come across a demon here.

The hanyou, Gojyo, took out a cigarette pack from his pocket and took a cigarette out from it, putting it in his mouth. He put the pack in his pocket and grabbed out a lighter and started to flick the switch to make the fire, but it was out of fuel. His red eyes went in rage, but he calmed down quickly. He ran his fingers through his crimson hair, sighing. He turned to Sanzo; his blonde-head friend's back facing him.

"Hey Sanzo, got a light?" Gojyo asked him.

Sanzo went into his pocket and threw the lighter at him, without even looking at him. Gojyo caught the lighter and started to flick the switch. All he saw was sparks coming out but no fire.

"Dammit, Sanzo! You gave me an empty one!" Gojyo shouted at him.

"That was the whole point in giving it to you," said Sanzo calmly.

"You don't need a stupid cigarette. Your breath smells like ass anyway," Goku smiled with humor. His golden eyes flickered with joy.

Gojyo turned to Goku. "What did you say, monkey!"

"You heard me!"

Gojyo quickly grabbed his short brown hair. "How about I dye your hair red!"

"No way, I don't want to look like you!"

"You're supposed to respect your elders!"

"Why would I respect you, you water sprite."

Gojyo was about to say more, but he stopped when he heard a gun shot from Sanzo. Both Gojyo and Goku looked at Sanzo, seeing him holding the gun, pointing in the air.

"Shut up! Or the last thing you'll hear is a gun shot to your head," said Sanzo angrily. They both kept quiet after that. That gave Hakkai a chance to speak.

"You know…you don't have to be so cruel to them," Hakkai said with a smile.

"They're annoying little assholes."

"I see…" As Hakkai looked up at the sky, he noticed the clouds were forming together.

Goku started to sniff. "I smell rain…"

"Hakkai, do we have anything to set up a tent here?" Asked Gojyo

"I'm afraid not," Hakkai answered him.

"Any money?"

"Yeah, but not much."

"Then wake up Hakuryu so we can go to a hotel."

"Even if I did wake him up, we won't make it to the next town."

"Then how long are we suppose to wait?"

"Until Hakuryu wakes up."

Gojyo growled to himself.

Hakkai had a feeling on why Gojyo wanted to leave so badly. It's because of the rain. Hakkai turned his attention to Sanzo, who was just calming himself down, because he also hates the rain, his arms was folded over his chest with his eyes closed and his leg on top of the other. The rain also makes Hakkai uneasy.

The rain always brings back bad memories upon them. Memories that want to be forgotten…that are never meant to be there. Gojyo only wishes for the rain to wash away his memories…of his mother…for Hakkai…and Sanzo…that is not revealed.

In the silence, Sanzo was trying to relax, but something kept on bothering him. He keeps hearing a rushing sound in the bush. But this time, it became a little loud. He looked to his left and saw nothing. Goku saw Sanzo's curious face and then questioned him.

"Is something wrong, Sanzo?" Goku asked him.

"It's nothing," Sanzo replied. Then rustle in the bushes became louder and both Sanzo and Goku looked at their left, seeing nothing. But they were worried, so they ignored it at first.

Hakkai wanted to say something to Sanzo about the rustle in the bushes, but he stopped as soon as he heard Hakuryu making a noise. He smiled, knowing that Hakuryu can now be their transportation again.

"Glad you're awake, Hakuryu. Now lets get going," said Hakkai, still smiling. Hakuryu made a happy cry, turning on his headlights. That's when it started to rain, hard. They were shivering from the cold, pouring rain.

"Hakkai…tell Hakuryu to step on it, "said Sanzo angrily.

"Right, Hakuryu-"

Hakkai's words were interrupted when he heard a big band on the hood of the jeep. Everyone's eyes closed shut, startled by it, but when they finally opened their eyes, all they saw was hard, pouring rain. But their vision became a little more clearer, a hand with nails as long as a regular demon, and the hand was leading to an arm, which lead to a body, a woman's body. She had long brown hair, and when Hakkai saw her eyes, he was surprised to see golden eyes that Goku have. When Hakkai looked deeper into her eyes, he saw hunger and anger…but all behind that, he saw a little bit of hope inside.

Hakuryu turned on his headlights and revealed the demon woman, also blinding her, the demon covered her eyes quickly. They were all speechless.

"Um…Hakkai…is she…?" Gojyo was to stunned to even finish the sentence.

"Yes, Gojyo. She is naked…but I can't stop wondering why…" said Hakkai.

"There's no time for that. It looks she's about to-" Before Sanzo could even finish what he was saying, Hakuryu started to cry out in pain. The demon woman was digging her claws into the hood of the jeep.

"Hakuryu!" Hakkai was starting to get worried now, so he wanted to act fast. But just before he could do anything, the demon woman jumped on top of the hood and started to observe the men in front of her. When she saw Goku and his golden eyes, she roared, and then she charged at him. Goku quickly jumped out of the jeep just in time, and landed on the wet ground. Goku almost slipped in the mud but quickly got back on his feet when she strike at him again, her claws becoming close to rip his face apart.

'_She is starting to remind me of Goku when he turned berserk,'_ Gojyo thought to himself. "Damn! At least her hair is long enough to cover her ass!"

"Gojyo! That's too much information!" Hakkai exclaimed.

Goku put his hand on his right cheek, feeling something warm and red against it. He pulled his hand away from his cheek and looked at it, seeing the small amount of blood from his cheek, and the blood dripping from the scratch on it. He smirked and quickly wiped the blood from his cheek.

"You're pretty good…" said Goku. "Now it's my turn." He thrust his hand in the air, summoning his red-rod stick, Nyoi-Bou, twirling it around and getting ready to attack.

"Goku, don't!" Hakkai yelled out.

"Why the hell not?" Goku complained.

"Don't kill her, she's not a demon, she's human!"

"Wha…"

"How could that be? She can't be a hanyou, could she?" Gojyo questioned Hakkai.

"If she were, she would have the crimson hair and eyes."

"So what do you suggest for us to do?" Sanzo asked him.

"Knock her out, that way we can take her in and she can explain what's happening. I can only tell that she is a full human, not a demon, at all."

"Whatever, I don't really care. You guys can do whatever you want while I watch." Sanzo turned his back against them and started to walk to Hakuryu, took his usually seat, and watched them take care of the demon woman.

Hakkai smiled. "Sure, go right ahead."

"Wait a minute!" Gojyo shouted.

"Don't worry, we'll take care of it. Just help me and Goku out."

"Well if you don't want to kill this woman, then tell that to the monkey. You know how hard he punches."

"Believe me, Gojyo, I do know how hard he punches."

"Will you guys shut up and help me out here!" Goku yelled at them.

"Sorry about that!"

Gojyo smirked and turned his attention to Goku. "Wow, you really are a stupid monkey. You can't fight her by yourself, huh?" Gojyo was teasing him.

"Stop calling me stupid monkey, you damn water sprite!" Angered Goku.

"Gojyo, watch out!" Hakkai warned him, but it was too late.

Before Gojyo can even do anything to prevent this from happening, Gojyo was tackled in to the stomach by the demon woman, making him cough out blood and spilling it on her, causing him to fall on his back hard, pinning him to the ground hard.

"Damn bitch, get off!" Said Gojyo as he tried to struggle out of her grip. "A little help here!"

Goku gripped onto his Nyoi-Bou tightly and started to charge towards them. He first jumped in the air, and as he started to fall straight down to her, he swung his Nyoi-Bou down at the demon woman, but somehow, she suddenly disappeared and accidentally hit Gojyo's nose. Goku froze, he knew he broke Gojyo's nose…but he didn't know how deep in trouble he will be in later.

"Bastard!" Said Gojyo as he sat up and punched Goku in the face, causing him to fall down to the ground. "Are you really _that_ stupid! You broke my nose!"

"Well, if you would've moved I wouldn't have to break your nose!" Goku shouted at him back.

"You dumbass! That demon woman was on top of me! How was I suppose to _move_ exactly!"

"Guys, be quiet! I'm trying to focus!" Hakkai told them. Goku and Gojyo hushed after that, the three of them only hearing the sound of rain. Hakkai took in a deep breath, and exhaled. _'Alright…where are you…' _He started to cast his sense out, searching through the bushes, behind the trees and in the trees. He can't sniff her out, because of the rain. Hakkai's eyes started to wander to his right, searching slowly and quietly for any movement in the bushes or the trees, he wandered through his left, doing the same thing. When he searched up in the trees, catching a glimpse of golden eyes behind the leaves and branches, he smiled and turned his back against the tree. "Well, I don't see anything."

Goku sighed. "Man, and I was just starting to have fun, too…" he said disappointedly.

Hakkai smiled softly, knowing the demon woman was going to charge at him any minute now. All he had to do is pretend he doesn't know she's there, and then she'll attack, and that's when he'll strike. And that's when it happened…she charged out from the trees and started to head straight to Hakkai.

"Hakkai, look out!" Before Goku could even help him, Hakkai turned to face the demon woman and gave her a good punch in the stomach, causing her to cough out her own blood from her mouth. She trembled as she tried to get her senses back, reaching her hand to Hakkai's shoulders, and started to dig her nails into his skin.

"Hakuryu!" Hakkai called out.

Hakuryu made a cry and turned on his headlights and aimed them at the demon woman. She couldn't help but stare at the lights. Her eyes widen at the sight, causing her to roar out in pain.

Sanzo, who was sitting in the jeep, was watching every moment of it. She was transforming back to normal. The sound of flesh burning was coming from her, and steam starting to appear from her. Her hair was starting to become shorter, her claws becoming regular human hands, and her hands changing to the color of hazel.

'_Her eyes…they're changing color…so she really is human,'_ Sanzo thought to himself.

When the transformation was complete, she went on her knees, her eyes slightly open, staring at the four men, her vision getting blurry and then closing her eyes and fainted. Hakkai gasped and ran to her to check if she was all right.

"Thank goodness, she's alright," Hakkai said with relief.

"So now what do we do?" Gojyo asked him.

"I guess we take her with us to a nearby cabin, or something, we can't leave her like this." He turned to Sanzo. "Sanzo, can you get a blanket from the jeep? There should be one in the back."

Sanzo was mumbling curses under his breath as he got a blanket out of the jeep and brought it to Hakkai. Hakkai gently grabbed the blanket from Sanzo and wrapped it around the woman. He gently picked her up and carried her to the jeep. Gojyo and Goku started to follow and they all sat in the jeep. As Hakkai sat in his seat, he settled the woman on his lap, tucking her head under his chin and putting both hands on the wheel.

"Step on it Hakkai…I don't want to catch a cold, and if I do, I'll blame you for it," Sanzo said, roughly.

Hakkai smiled. "Yes, sir." He started the car and drove off into the rainy night, speeding in the forest.


	2. A Once a Month Curse

_-Chapter 2-_

_A Once a Month Curse_

"Sanzo…I'm hungry…" Complained Goku. His stomach was growling so loudly, annoying the hell out of Gojyo and Sanzo. "Can we get something to eat?" His voice was cracking every few seconds when he spoke, because he was hungry.

"Maybe later…" said Sanzo.

"But-!"

"Will you shut up!"

Goku shut his mouth, staring at the floor as he starves to death.

It was near lunchtime now. Gojyo, Goku, and Sanzo were in the kitchen, an _empty_ kitchen, with no food. The house was deserted, for what it looks like, it's been abandon for about a week or so. They found the house last night after they got the woman unconscious, surprisingly found clothes for them to change into so they won't get sick.

Goku was wearing a light yellow shirt with a peace sign on it, and a pair of ripped blue jeans. Gojyo was wearing a black sleeveless shirt, and a pair of blue shorts. Sanzo…he wasn't wearing a short, mumbling he doesn't need a shirt to keep himself warm. But he did change his pants, he was wearing a pair of white pants, tight around his bottom but he didn't care…yet. But he will get pissed off sooner or later, that's for sure.

As Sanzo was sitting at the table, he pulled out his cigarette and his lighter, letting the end of the cigarette lit at the end and threw it at Gojyo for him to use as well. Gojyo lit his cigarette and threw back at Sanzo, who put it in his pocket; Gojyo blew out a pile of smoke from his mouth, and leaned against the wall as he smoked. Although…Hakkai isn't there.

"Hey…when is Hakkai going to come out of that room?" Goku asked impatiently. Hakkai on the other hand, was in a different room, with the girl, he figured that it was best if she woke up seeing a non-perverted smoker, polite guy with her.

"Probably whenever she wakes up," Sanzo answered him.

Goku sighed once again…his stomach growling into the silence…

_(In Hakkai's room)_

Hakkai's chair was facing the bed, where the woman was sleeping in, using a warm, dry blanket to cover her uncovered body. He was a little bored in the room, she he got out of his chair and decided to grab a book from the shelf and started to read back on his chair. The book was called "Life In The Heavens". It was about four main characters, who have become friends throughout the story, later on causing trouble to everybody in the Heavens, including the Jade Emperor. The only person who was enjoying this so-called entertainment was the Merciful Goddess herself.

His reading was interrupted when he heard a knock on his door, hearing Gojyo opening the door and walking into the room. "Oi, we're going to get something to eat before Goku starts to eat his hand as food," said Gojyo.

Hakkai smiled. "Sure, go ahead."

Gojyo nodded, and his attention turned to the woman in the bed. "Should we pick up some food for her too?"

Hakkai's eyes darted over to her. "Probably, we wouldn't want to be rude to our guest, would we, Gojyo?"

"No, we won't. All right, I'm heading out; I think I'm starting to hear Goku's stomach all the way from the kitchen. Later." Gojyo closed the door behind, and left Hakkai to his book.

_(In the next town about 20 min. away…)_

Goku's eyes were wide opened as soon as he saw the food that was laid out, waiting to be sold and to be eaten. "FOOD!" Before Goku could even run off, Gojyo stopped him by pulling his ear.

"We're not here to fool around, we're here to buy food and then take it back to the house, got it?"

Goku started to grumble about Gojyo being an asshole. "Fine…" Goku signed and started to calm down. He found a place where they had most of Goku's favorite foods: beef, pork, meat buns, noodles, sauces, curry, rice…

Sanzo and Gojyo just stood there, watching Goku getting everything that _he_ wanted. Sanzo started to curse at Goku quietly, saying how his tax is going to become high if he keeps this up. He paid for the food, and they left. Each of them carrying two paper bags. Goku smiled to himself, imaging the food he is going to have when they get back, humming a song about food in his head.

_(Back at the house)_

Hakkai just finished chapter three of the book when he heard the bed moving. He looked up from his book and saw that her eyes were slightly open. He smiled gently and put the book down on the floor. "It's nice to see you awake," was all he said to her.

She turned her head to look at him, sighed and took her arm out from underneath the blanket and clutched it onto her chest and slowly sat up, facing Hakkai. She had shoulder-length brown hair with gorgeous hazel eyes.

"How long have I…been here?" The woman asked him.

"Through the whole night, it's the afternoon now. How are you feeling?"

"I feel like shit…" Hakkai smiled with amusement. It usually means that she is fine, since she is cursing and all, reminds him of Sanzo when he was in a bad shape once. "What happened last night?"

Hakkai snapped back to reality. "Oh, you attacked us last night, and correct me if I'm wrong here, I'm pretty sure you were a youkai."

The woman's eyes flashed open with shock; she turned her head away, her heart beating fast now. _'Shit…that means I have some explaining to do…damn the moon.'_

She turned her face straightforward, calming down a bit. Silence filling the room, making them nervous. As the silence continued, Hakkai noticed that the woman was clutching hard onto the blanket against her chest, wandering what was wrong. That's right! She must be cold.

He got up from his seat and she looked at him. "I'll get some clothes for you to wear, be right back." She nodded slowly at him and he left the room quietly. After he closed the door, he started to think he felt a strange power from her. What…or who is she exactly? She doesn't even need a power limiter to keep her from transforming into a youkai, but then again, he can smell the flesh of human on her. He shook his head, brushing his thoughts to the back of his mind and started to walk down the hall, seeing his friends back from town, putting the bags on the table.

"Oi, Hakkai! We got food, there's enough for all of us, including her!" Goku said with a content smile.

"Shh…you don't want her to hear you," he said in a low voice.

Sanzo and Gojyo stared at him. "So she's awake, huh?" Gojyo asked him.

"It appears so, I was just getting her some clothes for her to wear, be back in a few minutes. Please excuse me." He left the kitchen and headed to a room, a room filled with piled clothes on the floor because they wanted to find the ones that actually fit them. He started to look in the dresser, trying to find some pants her size and a shirt long enough for her. But…there was no pants her size…so he found a long black shirt, walked out of the room and headed back to her room. He opened the door to her room, seeing she was still on the bed as he left her. "Well…I couldn't find some pants but I found a shirt that could be long enough for you." He put it on the bed and turned around so she can put it on.

"Thanks," she said to him. Hakkai heard her getting up from the bed, picking up the shirt and putting it over her head. Waiting for the right moment to introduce himself.

"Oh yeah, how rude of me. My name is Cho Hakkai, who are you?"

"My name is Michelle, eighteen years old and pretty short for it too."

'_Come to think of it…she does seem around Goku's age…'_ "How tall are you anyway?"

"I'm about 5'2'', anything else you would like to know about me?"

'Damn, Goku is at least two inches taller then her…' "Um...It's fine, of course, you would have to explain to us about last night, it's all what we all wanted to know." 

"Us?" She repeated him. Hakkai turned around, seeing the black shirt went all the way down a few inches above her knees.

"Yes, us. A blonde houshi who mutters curses all the time, Genjyo Sanzo; a child-like guy named Son Goku; and a perverted crimson hair and eyes, Sha Gojyo."

She became silent, and then she spoke. "Genjyo Sanzo…" It sounded like she was saying it as if she heard it before or that she was trying to remember him from somewhere. She nodded her head and walked to the door, opening it. "Shall we go?"

Hakkai nodded and closed the door behind him and followed Michelle down the hall, to the kitchen. He went on ahead of her to lead her to the kitchen, as he heard the voices of the kitchen stopped, the men at the table stared at Michelle and Hakkai. Hakkai cleared his throat. "Everyone, this is Michelle." She greeted them with a bow. "Please, have a seat."

She nodded and took a seat next to Goku and Gojyo, Hakkai sat next to Sanzo. Michelle was starting to feel the pressure of them staring at her, it made her heart pound hard. In a room with four men, with nothing on except for a long shirt that reaches above her knees.

Goku on the other hand, was studying her: her shoulder length brown hair and her hazel eyes sparkled in the sunlight. That made Goku thought of some food. "So, are you hungry?" He asked her, breaking the silence.

Gojyo put a hand to his face. "Do you really have to burst out like that?" He asked him.

"It's not my fault I'm so damn hungry!"

"Oh, so it's only about you? You don't care if our guest is hungry?"

"I do care, that's why I asked her."

"Shut the hell up or go to hell," Sanzo told them as he readied his gun.

"Sanzo, I'm sure we don't need the violence now, how about we save that for later?" Hakkai said calmly. Sanzo muttered a curse and put the gun away. Hakkai smiled, and he turned his attention to Michelle. "So, can you tell us about last night?"

Everyone became silent, they heard Michelle took a deep breath, and let it out.

"Eleven years ago, on the night of the full moon, it was then that…a curse came upon me. Once a month, on a night of a full moon, if I stare into the full moon or the moonlight shines in my eyes, I start to transform into a youkai. Right now, I'm on my own journey to search the person who placed this curse upon me, and kill this person, to stop the curse," said Michelle, afraid of seeing or even hearing their reaction.

After a few moments of silence, Gojyo finally spoke. "So, you're a full human, not a youkai?" He questioned her.

"Yes, I have no youkai blood in me, it's a curse in which I received ever since I was seven years old."

"So…how do you turn back to human again?" Goku asked with curiosity.

"Sun…or something that resembles the sun, a form of light."

"Like Sanzo's hair?" Goku asked as soon as he grabbed some of Sanzo's hair.

"Dammit, monkey!" Sanzo took out his paper fan and slapped Goku's face, knocking him down on the floor.

"Well…not exactly…headlights for example, or a lantern," said Michelle.

Hakkai smiled. "Hakuryu, you were doing some good thinking last night."

Michelle looked at Hakkai with a confused look. "Who?"

"Kyuun!"

Michelle gasped as she jumped out of her seat, seeing a white small dragon flying in the air. Hakuryu flew to Hakkai, who now held him in his arms, petting his small head gently. Michelle calmed down and sat back in her seat. Hakkai laughed softly.

"Don't worry, Hakuryu is harmless, when he wants to be."

"I see…" Michelle stood up. "Well, I should be getting ready to leave." She started to walk to the hallway. As Sanzo was smoking his cigarette, he quickly glanced at Michelle, seeing her hair flow in the air as she walks, catching a sight of a particular earring, a silver one.

'_A high priestess…'_ Sanzo thought to himself.

"Michelle, wait!" Goku called to her. Michelle stopped and slightly turned her body to face Goku, with a smile on her face. "Would you like to have lunch with us?"

Gojyo sat up straight. "Since when did you become such a gentlemen?"

Goku turned to him. "I'm not trying to be a gentlemen, just being nice, plus I'm HUNGRY!"

"Why, you little-!"

Gojyo stopped getting up as soon as he heard Michelle's giggle. When her giggling ceased, she smiled…but for some reason, it wasn't much of a _real_ smile.

"Thank you, but I do have to go.

"But you only have a shirt on. Why don't you let us buy some clothes for you at least? We'll have lunch first and then buy you some clothes." Hakkai suggested to her.

"I guess that'll do…let me use the bathroom first to wash my face."

She started down the hall.

The others became silent. Goku turned to the table and sat in his seat, his face looking down at the table, with a little blush on his face. "She's really pretty…" He said quietly.

"You're damn right!" Gojyo put his feet on the table and started to lean back with his chair, his hands on the back of his head, with a smirk on his face. "She's cute as a youkai, but when she's human, she's hot!" He put a hand to his mouth, taking the cigarette out to blow out the smoke.

Hakkai giggled. "Cute or not, she's a high priestess."

"Huh?" Said Goku and Gojyo."

"That's right. She's a high-ranking priestess, same thing as Sanzo."

They both looked at him, making Sanzo a little pissed and saying, "WHAT!"

They both shook their heads and managed to say 'nothing.'

"Anyway, you can tell she's a priestess with the silver earrings, it resembles a high-ranking priestess, plus she has a red shakra on her forehead. But for a priestess…she is short…Shorter then you, Goku," Hakkai explained. He then came to his sense and put on his serious face. "Anyway, I do wonder why she's out here. She's only eighteen, and a high-ranking priestess too, but she should be staying at her temple."

"So…if she's a miko, how come she doesn't have a robe or a scripture?" Gojyo asked Hakkai.

Sanzo put his cigarette down and blew out some smoke. "Because the Buddha doesn't' trust women in scriptures." He explained, Gojyo became silent. "It's only been 50 years since they have allowed women in temples, and letting them train, study, become holy. They let the women become mikos, but they don't' allow them to handle scriptures, because they believe that women will _never_ be strong enough to handle the power of the scriptures, or they just plainly believe they don't have power."

"But Michelle _has_ power," Hakkai nodded.

"Power?" Goku seemed confused.

"You two didn't feel it? She has strong holy powers; it's actually a little scary. I never sensed that kind of power before," Hakkai said, feeling a little petrified. "Although, I must say, Michelle is the first miko I have ever seen."

"She's the second one I have seen…" said Sanzo.

"You've met one before? When?"

"Long story, will rather not talk about it."

Hakkai stared at Sanzo, curiously.

"But…aren't there more mikos in Shangra La?" Gojyo asked them.

Hakkai looked at Gojyo. "Not really. A lot of young girls go to the temple to try and become a miko. Most girls leave home at the age of ten, and don't go back until they're 15, or younger. But they go on their own free will. Only one or two mikos are selected every three of four years, sometimes longer."

"Wow…seems like the women just want to become strong, huh?" Goku commented.

"That, or to prove to their family of what they're capable of. Michelle is one of the lucky ones who became a high-ranking priestess." Hakkai nodded slowly and then slowly standing up from his seat. "I'm going to go check on her." He turned his back to them and started to walk down the hallway. In the halls it showed a little darkness and some light into it. It's strange on how walls can listen. Listening carefully, he only heard the gentle breeze through he open window, gently blowing on the curtain. But something was missing, what could it be?

Hakkai noticed what it is and quickly ran down the hall, to the room where she woke up. When he slammed the door open, huffing and puffing, she was gone…

'_She must've went out the window…'_ He sighed, walking back to the other to tell them that their guest ran away.

_(Later on)_

Later on, when their clothes were dry, and have them on, they were ready to go. The Sanzo party started to leave the abandon house the way they left wanted it to. Hakuryu couldn't turn himself into a jeep because of the crowded forest. So they're going to walk until they get on a road or find themselves out of the forest.

Only one person will be complaining about this…

"Do we have to walk? I don't feel like walking…and I'm hungry…" Goku complained.

"Already? But you just ate," said Gojyo.

"I know but I can't help it."

"You'll never change…"

Hakkai smiled as they walk, but his smile turned to a frown. Sanzo noticed his expression but ignored it and kept walking. Sanzo doesn't really understand why Hakkai was feeling so guilty just because Michelle ran out the window. Sanzo doesn't really care, just glad that he doesn't have to waste any more time on her.

"Once we are out of this mess, we'll be continuing on to India. Got it?" Sanzo questioned them all.

They all nodded to him, but Goku was pissed. "But I'm so bored! I didn't get much action yesterday because of Michelle being a human!" He complained.

"Deal with it, monkey. Because I'm not going to entertain you, that's Gojyo's job."

"What! Who said anything about that!" Gojyo shouted.

"Hey, be quiet. I thought I sensed something," Hakkai said as a whisper.

They all stopped bickering, now paying attention to the surroundings. Since Sanzo was human, he couldn't really sense things well but he knows better than the other three, but at least their sense are better. He can at least sense youkai auras.

"Do you guys sense anything?" Sanzo asked them.

"I sense a couple of youkais, but they're probably not worth it. What about you guys?" Hakkai confronted.

"Not sure…" said Goku.

"Same here," said Gojyo.

"Well, there's more then five, I'll say at least twenty or thirty of them," said Sanzo.

"So that means…"

"We're completely surrounded," Hakkai said with a calm face.

"I hate being popular," said Sano as he started to load up his gun while Goku and Gojyo summoned their weapons. As things were quiet, the Sanzo party was still listening, until that moment came… "Now…"

They all jumped apart, going into different directions; Hakkai started to summon his Chi and aimed it in the bushes, making the youkais behind it jump out of hiding.

"Go! Attack them!" Said one of the youkais.

Sanzo stood in position and started shooting at the youkais, one by one, aiming at their heads. Tiny splatters of blood dropped to the ground as he shoots them. Along with Goku who pierced his Nyoi-Bou into the chest of a youkai, and Gojyo using his crescent staff to cut off their necks.

"Hey, maybe after this we can get something to eat?" Goku said as he jumped up and kicked a youkai in the head.

"Well it only depends on what we're going to have tonight," said Hakkai, doing a karate-chop on the back of a youkai's neck.

Gojyo released the chain of his staff and started to swirl it around. "It doesn't matter to me. Actually, I would like to have meat tonight."

"Everything is meat when it comes to you…" Sanzo drew his gun and shot at Gojyo, but dodged in time and the bullet pierced through a youkai's heart.

"Hey! Watch it next time, baldy!"

Sanzo rubbed his nose angrily against his. "What did you say, you cock roach?"

Hakkai stopped fighting and quickly tried to break them up. "Now, now guys. We can't fight right now, we have to entertain our guests first, right Goku?" He thought as he smiled towards him.

Goku banged a youkai's head with the tip of his Nyoi-Bou and turned around with a confused look. "What did you say?"

Hakkai sighed gently. "Never mind."

"Whatever." Gojyo quickly grabbed a cigarette and lit it as he fought the youkais. Sanzo did the same, but with his cigarette, he took it and burned it on the eye of his enemy youkai, the youkai put his hands to his face quickly and started to scream. That's when Sanzo shot him also.

Hakkai started to summon his Chi again, and the Chi obliterated the last remaining youkais. Tiny puddles of blood were on the ground, already stained in the earth, carcasses laid on the ground as they stood.

"Well that's the last of them," Gojyo smiled.

"Idiot…" Sanzo loaded his gun and aimed at the bushes. "There's still two left…"

"What?"

All of a sudden, something hit Sanzo's wrist and he dropped his gun, he started to went for it but something grabbed his neck and both of his arms. The arm around his neck was tightening, he could barely breath. The youkai behind him was breathing heavy next to his ear, he couldn't stand the stench that the youkai was carrying around him, it smelled like onions.

That's when another youkai came out, his claws were long, and he aimed his claws at Sanzo's stomach, at one of his organs.

"Heh heh, looks like your Sanzo is in trouble. All you have to do is put your weapons down and we won't hurt him. And for you, one eye guy, walk away now," the youkai commanded them. They all knew why Hakkai had to leave, because of his Chi. They didn't move for a second, so the youkai decided to become a little rough by putting the tip of his nail to Sanzo's skin and started to dig in it. Hakkai had a horror look on his face and started to walk away, and Goku and Gojyo put their weapons on the ground. And he spoke again. "Our reinforcements will come here soon, to exterminate all of you. If you try to fight back, Sanzo will get it."

Goku and Gojyo clenched their teeth. They knew whether or not if they fight back, Sanzo is going to die anyway and take the Matan Scripture with them. They should've realized it was their plan from the start.

"Hey, boss, what should we do until our men arrive?" Asked the youkai, who was holding Sanzo as prisoner.

"We wait, of course." He started to laugh.

Sanzo couldn't stand this. He wanted to move his legs, but they must've put a binding spell on them. He couldn't even speak, the only thing he could do was breathe and think. He closed his eyes tight, trying to think of a solution. And that's when it hit him, he felt some kind of energy close by. A complete different one…it's human…

"Boss, do you sense that?"

"Yeah, someone's here." He turned to Goku and Gojyo. "I thought there was only the four of you guys."

"There is. I don't know who the hell is here now. Do you think we're that stupid to risk someone like that?" Gojyo replied to him.

All of a sudden, Gojyo felt a slight breeze passed by him quickly. Goku felt it too, and they both looked around to see what it was, that's when one of the youkai screamed. He let go of Sanzo, and saw an arrow between his eyes. Sanzo couldn't believe what he was seeing, he didn't see anything like this. The arrow in the youkai started to release a pink light, and the youkai burst in flames and it turned to ash.

"What the hell was that! You guys are going to get it!" The youkai summoned his claws up to attack Sanzo, and another arrow came and pinned his neck. The youkai coughed out blood and tried to lift his hand up to take the arrow out of his neck, but when he touched it, the arrow deflected his hand and he also burst into flames, and there was nothing left of him except for ash.

'_He was purified…?'_ Sanzo thought to himself. He slowly got up and grabbed his gun and put it away. He then reached for the arrow; he picked it up and examined it. _'I can feel holy power in this arrow…'_

"Sanzo!" Goku started to run towards him as he stood up straight. "Are you alright? What was that?"

Sanzo showed him the arrow. "Someone shot a purifying arrow."

"What does that do?" Gojyo asked.

"It purifies youkais. It can basically one too, like it just did there. But…it seemed like the shooter was angry, because they burst into flames. If the shooter, didn't feel anything, the youkai would've just disappeared." Sanzo explained to them.

"So who shot the arrow?" Goku asked him.

"I have an idea on who is it was." They turned and saw Hakkai walking back to them. "Only a miko can do that."

"You mean…"

"Yup…I did it…"

They all got confused and searched the area and saw nothing. They heard rustling in the trees and saw something hanging from it. Michelle was hanging from the tree branch, using her legs to hang on to it.

"Clearly, men can't do anything by themselves. They always need a woman's hand," she closed her eyes and shook her head disappointedly.

"Why are you hanging upside down?" Goku asked.

"Because I am. I would rather not stand on the ground, thank you very much."

Gojyo smirked and walked behind Michelle. She was using one hand to hold her bow, and the other hand to hold the shirt up to cover her front. "You know…you have a nice little tiny ass."

Michelle gasped and jumped down from the tree, and smacked him hard in the cheek.

Hakkai and Goku's eyes widen, that was the first time he got slapped by a woman…Sanzo wasn't surprised. He's been asking for one ever since he met him.

"Damn posers…" Michelle grumbled.

"Um…" Hakkai walked up to her slowly, staying a close distance from her. "I'm sorry about what Gojyo did. Don't mind him. Are you alright?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be? I saved Sanzo's life so why are you asking me that?"

"Heh, good question."

"You guys better go before the reinforcements come. There's a town close by here-!"

"We know, we went there to have lunch, remember?"

Michelle glared at him, and managed to say a "Humph!" and turned her head away from his.

"Why don't you accompany us into town? You do need some new clothes, and we can pay them for you."

"No we're not." Sanzo demanded.

"I have my miko clothes somewhere in town, I can just go there myself. I accidentally left them there and went on to another town, they were held up to dry, I need to go back there to find it." Said Michelle.

"That's fine, we'll accompany you."

"No we're not." Sanzo said again.

"That's not necessary. I can go there myself."

"But what if somebody attacks you! We can't just leave you in a town with just that shirt on, right Hakkai?" Goku said anxiously.

"Right, so we shall accompany you," he said with a smile.

"_No we're not."_ Sanzo said angrily again.

"Great, then it's settled. Lets get going!" Goku cheered on and started to march their way out of the forest.

Sanzo was left behind. He put his hand to his forehead and sighed angrily. No one just never listens to him…

**From the writer:**

Hey, guys! It's Rozanna. I'm sorry that it took me so long to write this chapter. But since I got great reviews, they encouraged me to continue on writing. Thanks for the people who commented on my first chapter of this story This is Chapter 2. Hopefully I won't have trouble writing Chapter 3 . The story may be boring in the beginning, but trust me, it'll get pretty interesting if you keep on reading. Thank you for reading

-Rozanna


	3. Journey to West

_The Curse Within The Human_

_-Chapter 3-_

_To West_

_(Flashback…)_

_The day Sanzo was summoned to the Temple of the Setting Sun, the Northern god revealed himself to Sanzo, along with the other two. As Sanzo was given information about journey west, and sickened that he had to work with youkais, he couldn't stand to listen to them much longer._

"_Sire…please tell me again why I have to work with these youkais…" Sanzo asked politely._

"_They may be youkais, but they have a human heart. If you journey with them, you'll find new enemies, new tasks, and know them better," the Northern god replied. _

_Sanzo nodded and slowly stood up. "I understand, Sire. I shall take my leave." He bowed again, and started to head for the door._

"_Wait, Sanzo." Said the goddess._

_Sanzo stopped in his tracks and turned around to face the three of them. "What is it?"_

"_On your journey, I sense a disturbance…No, I see a disturbance. You'll run into someone you have met once before. This person has a superior heart, this person will be of assistance to you on your journey west." She explained to him._

_He blinked and said, "Help me with what?"_

"_Help you with you."_

_(End of flashback…)_

"Dammit," Sanzo said as the memory of the visit to the Temple of the Setting Sun squirmed in his head.

"Did you say something, Sanzo?" Hakkai asked curiously.

"It's nothing, go do whatever you have to do, I'll go find a hotel and get a room for…" He looked at Michelle and sighed. "…for the five of us."

"Alright, we'll be back in an hour or so." They started to head off into the town, and Sanzo was left to check in the hotel. He grumbled as he registered for rooms for five people, wasting money on _another _person.

As soon as he was done registering, he went straight up to his room. Opening the door and closing it behind him, sitting at a table and pulling out his cigarettes and lighter. The weekly paper was in there already, so he picked it up, took out his reading glasses, and started to read. He had nothing better to do anyway. It was starting to get musty in there so he opened the door, enjoying little of the gentle breeze blowing in his face and through his hair.

He muttered a curse and sat back in the chair, trying to relax and continued to read the newspaper. But his mind kept going back to that flashback he had earlier. Why did it come to him now? A disturbance…could it be that girl? Was she the disturbance? Not a chance, she's not staying with them long. She has no reason to. If she wants to find who gave her that curse she can do it herself. On her own, by herself. Hell, he should've done that, gone to India by himself, but no, the northern gods wanted him to take the three stooges with him.

He sighed, and continued to read the paper again.

_(Where the other group is.)_

"Excuse me, ma'am? I left a pair of clothes here about a few weeks ago, and I was wondering if you still have them," Michelle asked politely.

The owner of the store gazes upon Michelle, as if trying to remember her from somewhere. She put a hand over her mouth as she gasped and place her hand down, as she appeared a smile upon her face. "Ah, yes. I remember. We do have your clothes. Just a moment, please."

Michelle nodded as the owner went to the back to search out for her clothes, tapping her foot on the floor impatiently. She was vexing Gojyo a little, so he decided to shatter the silence. "Impatient, are you?" He asked with a grin on his face.

"Very." She answered quickly.

He laughed. "Yeah, me too." He lifted his hand to his head and scratched as he said, "I like women like that."

"Excuse me?"

He turned to face her, bending his back so he can see eye to eye with her, his lips almost close to hers. "Yup, that's what I mean. So what do you say?"

Her eyes were filled with shock. She sighed and closed them, putting on a pleased smile, and leaned closer, they're list almost touching. "You want to know what I say?"

He grinned again. "Yes, I do."

She smirked, then she thrashed a punch in his stomach, and he couldn't move. "That's what I say." She smiled joyfully.

"Here are your clothes." The owner came back with a brown paper bag and handed them to Michelle. She thanked the owner and she asked if there was a place for her to change at, or at least buy a few clothes. The owner gave her permission, and then she went into the store to find some. Her eyes later landed on the wounded Gojyo on the floor. "Is the young man alright?"

Hakkai giggled and kneeled down to help Gojyo up. "Oh, he's fine. Just had a bit of thrashing," he replied.

"Are you sure? Do you want me to get a medical doctor?"

"I'm fine," Claimed Gojyo. _'Damn bitch…I'll make sure I'll get you and your ass…heh heh…that really nice ass…'_

Back to where Michelle was at, she was picking out clothes her size. Small…since she's short, but she thinks she has a big ass to go with the shortness. She looked through the dark color section, since it was her favorite color. She scans through the shirts first, spotting a nice black shirt with a dragon on the back. She took it from the shelf and looked into the mirror, placing the shirt in front of her to see how good it will look. The black shirt she was wearing was way too big on her.

'_Good…just my size too…'_ She held onto the shirt and went into the pants section. She hated black pants on her, so she wanted to look for pants that have a little light color to it. Blue, or light blue or…oh, white! Well…it wasn't really white, in her opinion. It's a little darker then white, more like light gray. She found the pants satisfying and went into the dressing room.

"Hey, Hakkai. Is it ok if we could buy a couple of snacks before we leave?" Goku asked with a growling stomach.

"As long as Sanzo doesn't kick our ass, it's fine with me," Hakkai responded.

"Geez, what is taking her so long?" Gojyo said angrily.

"She's a woman, Gojyo. You're going to have to get use to it…" When Hakkai realized he said, "She's a woman", memories of Kanan started to fill his head. Memories of them shopping together, getting groceries from the market place. Kanan always took her time to shop for new clothes or the right food to eat. Hakkai didn't mind, he liked the fact that Kanan isn't fast; she took her time at things. So why…

"Hey, I'm back. So what do you guys think?" Hakkai brushed his thoughts to the back of his head and took a glance at Michelle. The black shirt she was wearing was loose around her belly and her chest, the shirt ending a few inches below the belt. The white pants on her weren't baggy, nor was it tight, just the right size that it doesn't make her ass look so round and big. He saw her turn around, revealing a dragon on the back of the shirt.

Goku and Gojyo awed when they saw her in the clothes. Looking so different in just a few minutes.

"Does the clothes suit you?" The owner asked her as she got done examining the clothes on her.

"Yes, it very well does." She stepped over to the counter where Hakkai was standing, and he paid for the clothes. Michelle left with her new clothes on and the bag with her miko clothes in it. "So, what's next?"

"Well…Goku wanted to get a few snacks before we leave," said Gojyo as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Fine with me. Actually, I do have a few errands to run, if you'll excuse me." She bowed to them and turn to start to run with the bag in her hand. Gojyo and Hakkai both found that quite odd for her to run an errand so quickly, of course, Goku was as dense as always.

"What was that about?" Asked Gojyo.

"Dunno, maybe she'll tell us later," Hakkai answered.

"Hey…is she coming to west with us?" Hakkai and Gojyo stared at Goku, thinking about that for a moment.

"I don't think so. I mean…she does have her own journey to go on too. She needs to seek for the person who gave her that curse. Plus, Sanzo wouldn't allow it," Hakkai clarified him.

Goku sighed heavily. "Man…Sanzo always ruins the fun."

_(A different hotel)_

'_I'm pretty sure this is the room from last night…'_ Michelle thought. She gulped at the sight she might see. She was afraid she killed another innocent person. When her hand reached for the doorknob, she froze. A tear almost escaped and ran down her cheek, but she pushed her fear aside, and quickly turned the knob, thrusting the door open.

"Dammit…"

The room was just an ordinary hotel room. Michelle sighed in relief, and closed the door. She started to walk her way out of the hotel, when she started to think about Canon. _'Maybe they got rid of the blood and the body somehow…'_ She shook her head furiously. _'No…if they did I would've heard rumors about it by now. It's probably in the next town where Sanzo and the others are heading…if it is…'_

_(The hotel they're staying at…)_

"Sanzo! We're back." Goku barged into the room and ran to the table, dumping the food they bought from the store. But instead, he dumped it all over Sanzo's newspaper.

"Stupid monkey…couldn't you see that I was reading!" Sanzo growled.

"Geez, what's up with the pissy mood?"

"Why, you little!"

"Hey guys! Whoa…looks like I came just in time," Michelle smiled at the door as soon as she saw a fan in Sanzo's hand, about to smack Goku. Sanzo calmed down and sat in his chair, staring over at Michelle's new wardrobe. A black shirt and light gray pants…she went simple? Usually women would just by really fancy clothes. Hell, who cares? He doesn't.

"Well, I'm off to bed, it has been a long day." She turned for a second but forgot to ask Sanzo something. "Which one is my room?"

Sanzo just glared at her. Who does she think she is?

He closed his eyes with his arms crossed over his chest. "Two doors down from your right," he replied.

She nodded and headed to her room. Sanzo waited until he heard the footsteps stop and hearing the door open, and closing again. When he knew she was in her room, he wanted to say something that's off the subject. "This place is stupid…they even put balcony's that connect five rooms."

"And your point is?" Gojyo questioned.

"All of our rooms are attached. Why would I wish for a balcony with a bunch of blokes?"

Hakkai laughed uneasily. "Well, maybe each of us should take turns on using the balcony. I'm sure the sky will be crystal clear tonight, I know I would love to see the moon and the stars tonight."

"Ooooh…I would like to see some too. I haven't seen some in a long time!" said Goku with delight.

"I don't care, JUST GET OUT OF MY ROOM!" Sanzo screamed at the top of his lungs.

_(Late at night)_

Gojyo sat on the ledge of the balcony; smoking in his cigarette and blowing the smoke back out, relaxing to the night sky with his hair tied back in a ponytail. Hakkai was right, it's a crystal clear sky, and the moon is out tonight. Looking at the moon relaxes him; at least he can know he's going to sleep well tonight.

"Having fun, Gojyo?"

Gojyo turned his head slowly and saw Hakkai smiling at him a few feet away in his pajamas. Gojyo gave him a smile and faced the moon once more. "Yeah, I am." He put out his cigarette. "Question…did you smell any blood on her?"

Hakkai walked up to the balcony, resting his arms on the ledge and looked up at the moon with Gojyo. "Yeah, I also found some blood on Hakuryu when we went into that house. I cleaned it off him though," he replied.

Gojyo looked down. "Do you think…she killed…"

"A human? Possible…but we don't know. She probably doesn't remember anything when she transformed." He added, "You can't blame her though, it sounds like she's been through a lot. I can sense that…she had a teary and bloodshed past. But, I think it's best is she told us this on her own."

"Who said she's even coming with us to India?"

They both turned around and found the owner of the voice, the Ill-Tempered and Agitated Sanzo.

"Why the hell are you up so late?" Sanzo questioned them both.

"I should ask you the same question, monk," said Gojyo.

Hakkai stood in between them to make sure there are no violent fireworks. "Now, now. It's late, there's no need to fight at this hour." Hakkai turned to Gojyo. "Gojyo, it's late, go to bed. I'm sure you need it to fantasize about the ladies."

"Hey, why do I have to…" Gojyo shut his mouth and figured why Hakkai wanted him to go to bed. He muttered a curse and jumped off the ledge and walked to his room. After it was closed shut, Hakkai faced Sanzo.

"I'm sorry about that, Sanzo. I guess we got a little caught up in the situation," he smiled at him.

"Hmph." He walked to the ledge and took his pack of cigarettes out, and lit up his cigarette. Inhaling for a few seconds and exhaled through his nose and rest his arm on the ledge. "If it's what you're thinking, she's not coming with us. I don't need anything else slowing us down when we get to India. We already have enough weight on our shoulders."

"I didn't really ask if she could come with us," said Hakkai, a little uneasy.

"You want her to come though," he took the cigarette into his mouth again.

"I just think she can be a great use to us, even Goku and Gojyo say the same thing too," said Hakkai. "She's a _miko_."

"And I don't care if she's a miko or not."

Hakkai got a little angry now. "Is it because of the first miko you met? You had a bad experience with her that you decided to hate all mikos now?"

"No, it's not that. I don't trust her," Sanzo reassured Hakkai.

"You don't trust anyone. She may be dangerous but-!"

"Who is dangerous?"

Hakkai closed his mouth when he heard Michelle's voice and greeted her with a smile. Tonight, she was wearing a short pants that covered partially of her thighs, and a gray spandex for her top. What the hell was she thinking into wearing that tonight?

"It's nothing. I'll be heading off to bed now. Goodnight." He gave her a small wave as he left, and she waved back as he walked into his room, and heard the door closed shut.

Michelle walked to the balcony, looking up at the starry sky. She sighed in relief, stretching her arms up in the air. "Ahh…I'm so tired…"

"Then go to bed," said Sanzo as he put out his cigarette.

"Not yet, I want to enjoy the night sky first," she said as an excuse for herself.

"I thought you hate the night." Michelle clenched her fists when she heard Sanzo say that to her. "Since you turn into a youkai at night. You're lucky it's not in the day; otherwise you would never see the day of light again." Michelle struck her hand at him, but Sanzo caught her wrist in time, she wasn't shocked, she knew he was going to stop her, but what's so bad in trying to smack him?

"Asshole, let go of me," she growled at him.

Sanzo studied her face, concentrating hard at his memory. Why the hell he can't remember things? _'I guess it's a habit, when people piss me off, I tend to make myself forget it.'_ He answered himself. When he studied the figure of her face, he started on the eyes. Her eyes were clouded with mysteries, dark mysteries. But he can't seem to remember where he saw her.

When he was done examining her, he let go of her wrist and said, "I see…so that's how it's going to be…fine." He turned his back to her and started to walk to his room. Michelle waited until his door was shut and said:

"How dare that asshole touch me, I'll make sure he pays!" She stomped her way angrily to her room and jumped right into bed.

_(In the morning) _

Hakkai was waiting outside of the hotel, sitting in the jeep form of Hakuryu and saw the rest of the group walking out of the doors of the hotel. As Goku and Gojyo jumped in the back seat, Hakkai looked at Michelle and saw her staring at them.

"Well, where are you heading off too?" He asked her.

"I'm going to continue my journey looking for the person who put this curse on me. I don't' know how long it will take, but it'll be worth it," she said with a smile on her face.

"Wrong," Sanzo said as he sat next to Hakkai in the jeep. "You're going to postpone your journey and come with us to India. Whether if you like it or not, I don't care, I made up my mind."

"Excuse me?" Said Michelle.

"You heard me, get your ass in the car."

She stopped for a second, and closed her eyes to give it some thought. When she figured things out, she opened her eyes. "Fine, I'll come with you. This could be an opportunity to find this person who gave me this curse. But…I'll only leave when my curse is gone, deal?" She climbed into the jeep and sat between Goku and Gojyo.

"That's fine, as long as you help us along the way," said Sanzo.

"What! You're only using me for…"

"Dammit, Sanzo! Now there's hardly any room in the back! You damn blonde!" Gojyo complained.

"Her ass is skinny enough to fit in the back! There should be enough room for the three of you!" Sanzo yelled back.

"Why the hell were you staring at my ass!" Angered Michelle.

"I never stared at your ass!" Sanzo fought back.

"Jeez, Gojyo. If you weren't so damn tall there would be a lot more room back here!" Goku complained.

Gojyo stuck his face to Goku. "Why you little, it's not my fault you eat so damn much and have a big ass to go with it!"

"Will you idiots stop talking about ASSES for God's sake!" Michelle lectured them.

Sanzo stood up and pulled the trigger to his gun in the air, silencing the three idiots in the back. "How about I shoot your bodies and leave it here on the ground!"

Hakkai sighed heavily and shifts the car into reverse and reversed the car back violently. When he did so, Sanzo fell on them and accidentally pull the trigger, but it didn't hit anything…hopefully…

"Hakkai! What the hell was that!" Gojyo yelled at him.

Hakkai then shifted it to drive and started to speed his way out of town.

"Dammit, Hakkai! Can you at least _wait_ until I get back in my seat!" Sanzo asked angrily.

"Nope, you said we don't have time, so we're leaving," he said with a smile.

"You know, I have a feeling Hakkai is going to kill us one day with his driving," said Goku, a little scared of his driving now.

"Yeah…I have the same feeling too…"Gojyo whispered to Goku.

"What was that?" Hakkai turned his head to face them and made a sharp left turn when he did so, making them to freak out even more.

"Shit, Hakkai! At least _drive straight to India_," said Michelle, scared for her life now.

After about five minutes, everyone was silent in the car and Hakkai continued driving west to India. Michelle didn't like the middle so she sat at the edge and made Goku sit in the middle between her and Gojyo. Another five minutes later, Goku and Gojyo did their usual routine: their stupid little bickering.

"Anyway, Sanzo, I thought you said you didn't want to have her come with us," Hakkai asked curiously.

"I guess I had a little change of heart," said Sanzo, relaxing in his seat.

Hakkai laughed. "I doubt it, but I'll take that answer."

Michelle sighed and tapped Hakkai's shoulder. "Is it usually like this between you guys?"

Hakkai smiled. "Yes, it actually is. Every day, Goku and Gojyo will fight about something pointless, and eventually Sanzo gets tired of it and threatens them with his gun, sometimes even smack them with his paper fan. Me, on the other hand, I just continue driving and try to ignore them," he said with a smile on his face.

Michelle fell silent; did she have to live through this everyday until she has to leave? Who knows when will that be…


	4. Chapter 4

_The Curse Within the Human_

_-Chapter 4-_

_The Trouble Begins_

_(The day after they met Michelle)_

"How are you feeling today, sir?" The owner of the hotel was visiting a guest room, checking Cane with his bandages. She brought in some new bandages and started to unwind the bandages around his chest.

"I'm feeling just fine, ma'am. Thank you." Cane smiled gently at the owner. "If it wasn't for you, I would've died in that room."

"But if it wasn't for you crawling out of the room half dead, you would also died." She started to wrap the new bandages around his chest. "Do you want me to make a report on this?"

"No, it's fine."

"Are you sure? That woman is out there somewhere. She did this to you, did she not?" She questioned him.

"Don't worry, she wasn't herself. She's not that kind of person to just kill and run off. I don't blame her since it was a full moon. For some reason, people get irritated on a full moon." Cane explained to her.

"So what are you going to do?" She asked him, a little worried about her guest.

"That's for me to decide. And ma'am, don't say a word about this. Not to anyone. You never saw the woman nor me the other night. You never saw a thing. Don't mention about it, ok?" He glared at her for a moment.

"Mention what?" She smiled at him, showing that she understood what he meant. He smiled back, and slowly got up, he grabbed his shirt and put it back on.

"I should get going," he finally said.

"But wait, can I at least support you with food and medicine?" He turned to her and smiled again.

"That would be great. Thank you."

_(On the road, flashback)_

_Inside the Temple of the Rising Light, there stands a miko, giving her prayers to the Merciful Goddess. A little girl was standing right behind her, with a pouty expression on her face. She knew she did something bad, she just didn't want to deal with her master right now after that Sanzo priest just left. _

"_Miko Amy-sama, can I go now?" The little girl asked._

_She sat there a few more minutes, finishing her prayer. When she was done, she stood up and took off her small gold crown, revealing her long and shiny blond hair in the light that shined through the window. She turned around and stared at the little girl._

"_Have you figured out why you're here?" Amy asked her._

_Her crystal sea blue eyes made the little girl flinch a little. "Yes…I stole a scripture from that Sanzo priest…" She stayed quiet. The Sanzo priest who she spoke of left with an unemotional expression on his face. _

_Amy bent down to look the little girl in the eyes. "Not only that, you were being rude to him. He is a higher rank then you. You're suppose to respect him, since you're a miko-in-training."_

"_But he's an as-!"_

"_Do not speak of him like that, not as long as I'm alive, you understand?" The little girl gave Amy a nod and glared at the floor. Amy sighed heavily. "It doesn't matter which Sanzo Priest comes to our temple, you respect him. Understand?"_

"_Yes, ma'am…" The little girl slowly turned around to the door, and started walking. She knew her punishment would be double the chores. But hopefully she forgot._

"_Wait."_

_The little girl stopped and turned around, facing her master, the one who was a mother to her in everyway. _

"_I know why you're aggressive…the full moon is coming soon…I can see why." Amy smiled gently at the little girl. "I'm sorry, I forgot about it. It's best that he left so he wouldn't see you."_

"_Am I going to be put in the shed again?" The little girl asked._

"_It's not up to me, it's up to you, if you don't want to hurt people. Your dad has been doing that ever since you have received that curse, did he not?" She said to the little girl._

"_He has…but he was the only one that was so nice to me…"_

_Amy walked over to her and embraced her with her arms; the little girl hugged her back._

"_Don't worry, young one. You don't have to tell me anything yet. When you're ready, you can tell me everything." Amy's arms tightened a little around the little girl. "You're lucky that you're even alive…you have strong holy powers…and you need to learn how to use them wisely…Michelle…"_

_(End of Flashback)_

As the wind flow through her hair, Michelle just got done analyzing her memory. Or better yet, an unexpected flashback. Why did that memory come to her now? Things have been strange ever since she first met the Sanzo Ikkou. Things that she can't figure out yet. But there is something about this group that she feels she has to know.

A couple of days have passed by ever since Michelle joined their group. They have just arrived in a town, a town that Michelle was in before she left as a youkai. She kept on wondering if Canon was all right. Right now…they were at the hotel…but…Michelle was afraid of what will happen then.

"Ack…my stomach hurts…" Goku complained.

"That's because you're hungry, you stupid monkey," said Gojyo.

"Grr…I don't have enough strength to even fight back, damn cockroach…" Goku insulted Gojyo.

"What did you say!"

"Dammit, will you SHUT THE HELL UP!" Screamed Sanzo.

"I'm sorry, miss." Said Hakkai, who was talking to the owner of the hotel. "They're always like that."

"Right…" The owner cleared her throat. "Anyways, you said five rooms, right?"

"Yes, ma'am." Said Hakkai.

"Alright." After she was done signing them in, she took a long look at Michelle. She looked back at her, almost like they were reading each other's thoughts. But that's when Sanzo kicked in.

"Come on, let's go," Sanzo commanded them.

Hakkai smiled, like he was playing along. "Yes, sir." They started there way up the stairs to their rooms. As the others were up ahead, Hakkai stopped halfway up the stairs and noticed Michelle wasn't following them. "Michelle, is something wrong?"

Michelle snapped back to reality and turn to face Hakkai. "Nothing is wrong, I just need to run a little errand real quick," she answered him.

"Already? We just got here," Hakkai new something was up.

"Yeah, I know…I just wanted to know if they have some sort of item I'm looking for," Michelle explained.

Hakkai stared at her for a few long moments. He knew she was lying, but what's the point on stopping her?

"Alright, just be back soon, ok?" He said.

"Sure." He nodded and continued his way up the stairs. As soon as he heard the doors closed, she turned to the owner. "Thank you for not saying anything."

"Not a problem dear." She nodded a couple of times. "I may not know what happened, however, you should be more careful."

"I'll try my best." And she does try her best; she can't control her youkai side. "Is…he still around?"

"No, he left this morning, I'm sorry." The owner answered her.

"Oh…" Michelle sighed and looked down at the floor, almost about to cry but was fighting for the tears not to come out. _'So he really did die…another innocent life gone…and it's all my fault…'_

"He did say…" Michelle looked back up. "…That you weren't that kind of person. I guess it wasn't a one night stand…he knew you after all."

Michelle turned red. "You…thought it was a one night stand…?"

The owner shrugged. "What else would I be thinking? You were both drunk and looked like you barely knew each other." Michelle's face turned bright red. "Anyway…he's still out there. He said he was going to look for you."

'_What…'_ "Wait…I thought you said he left this morning." Said Michelle.

"I did." The owner was confused.

"So…he's alive?" said Michelle, making sure she's not dreaming or anything.

"Yes, I never said he was dead, I only said he left this morning. As in, he _left town this morning._ Does that clear things up for you?" The owner was a little frustrated.

Michelle nodded._ 'Yes, he's alive!'_ Her spirits lit up when she heard those words. "Thank you…"

"I don't think you should thank me. I already had enough thanks from the guy. You're lucky I didn't went out and report you, he stopped me from doing it," angered the owner.

Michelle flinched at those words. "I-I'm sorry…"

"Ah, well, it's ok. Just be careful ok?" The owner showed a little smile.

And Michelle smiled back and ran up the stairs into her room.

_(Second Floor)_

"Alright, I'm bored, lets play cards!" Gojyo yelled in excitement, already grabbing the cards out from his brown leather jacket.

"No thanks," said Sanzo as he blew out some smoke.

"Geez…you're no fun, Sanzo. Hakkai, Goku? How about it?" Gojyo asked the two other men.

Hakkai waved his hand with exhaustion. "No thank you, Gojyo. At least not tonight, I'm beat."

"From what? Driving?" Gojyo grinned.

They stopped talking as soon as they heard a knock on the door. Hakkai told the person to come in, and saw Michelle opening the door. Although, her expression was a little different from before.

"Did you find the item?" Hakkai asked her.

"Oh…no, I didn't. Sorry to trouble you," she showed a little smile, and Hakkai knew it wasn't real.

"Anyway…" Everybody looked at Sanzo. "How long will it take for us to get to the next town?"

"Ah, right." Hakkai grabbed the map from his pocket and laid it out on the table for everybody to see. Hakkai pointed with his index finger to indicate where they were. "We're right here, in the Moonlight Village." He moved his index finger a few inches to the left and stopped. "The next town is about three or four days away. At this point, we're half way there to India."

"Half way huh…" said Goku, a little happy but tired.

"Good, the sooner the better. We leave early in the morning." Sanzo commanded them.

"So early?" Michelle questioned him.

"Yeah, we always leave in the morning 'cause Mr. Grumpy has a short-temper," said Gojyo.

Sanzo loaded his gun and pointed it at Gojyo's head. "Another word and your lights are out."

Michelle stared at them blankly. "Uh…right…I think I'm going to go out for a walk. I might need the air." She put her hands at the back of her head and headed for the door.

"Already? You just got back up here," Goku said, with concern in his voice.

"Uh…yeah…well I've been tired from the trip, so a little walking will do. See you in the morning." She continued to walk and waved her hand at them as a jester of "See you later."

"Wow, something's up." Said Gojyo with a gloom look.

"Yeah, and so is the village." Hakkai said, and Goku and Gojyo stared at him with confusion. "I heard from the other guests, that women and children have been disappearing lately. Been happening for a week now. Seems to me that they disappear at night, the perfect opportunity."

"Hmm…" Sanzo put his cigarette into his lips and breathed into it. He took it out and blew out some smoke, relaxing a little. "Only two out of five will be taken if that happens."

"What do you mean?" Gojyo asked.

"I meant as in the girl and Goku. Since he's considered a stupid monkey with a child's brain."

"Damn you, Sanzo…" Said Goku as he started to clench up his fists, almost ready to punch him.

"Well, we all should be getting some sleep. Be on guard though," said Hakkai.

"And what about Michelle?" Gojyo asked him.

Hakkai thought about it. "She probably already heard it from the owner. So, I'm sure she'll be fine."

_(Walking in the village outside)_

'_Maybe walking will help me clear my mind a bit…'_ Michelle sighed as she thought. She rubbed her eyes a bit, tiredly. "Damn…why am I so tired all of a sudden?" She continued to rub them for a bit, and yawned. "Dammit, I hadn't realized I was this tired…"

But she ignored her tiredness and continued on walking throughout the village. The night was cool to her, soothing, and relaxing. Plus, it was quiet, just the way she likes it. She stood in the middle of the street and looked up at the sky tiredly, and stared at the moon. Strange, one of her enemies is the one she likes: the moon. The moon was always so beautiful in the sky, with or without the stars. The moon was the important thing to her.

"Heh," she said as she looked back down. "Too bad you're the one who turns me into something I don't want to be." She sighed again, feeling even more tired. She rubbed her eyes again, as her vision started to get a bit blurry. "Damn, what is _wrong_ with me?"

She went to her knees and tried to catch her breathing. She was getting weaker by the second, and she didn't know why. Would she make it back to the hotel if she even tried? Probably not, not in her condition.

"What the…" Michelle felt some kind of strange aura around her, no not around her…coming to her. She summoned her bow and arrow and switched into ready position. She tried to aim it at wherever she was feeling the aura, but it seemed like it was coming from all directions. Oh, God, please don't hit a human.

Suddenly, she felt a shadow over her. She froze in fear, feeling the shadow coming to her: The shadow with four arms and sharp claws and baring sharp teeth. She trembled in fear, she couldn't move, she was too tired, too sleep, so what can she do? Before she could even do anything, she felt a palm fell to her mouth, and was being dragged away…

That's when she fell asleep…

_(Morning)_

As the owner of the hotel walked out of her room, yawning, she went to her desk and checked the people who were in the hotel. She checked over the list twice, and noticed something isn't right: Someone didn't sign back in last night. When she looked at the name, she noticed that she recognized that person and gasped, dropping the check board. She quickly ran upstairs and slammed open of the guests' room.

"GET YOUR ASSES UP, NOW!" She screamed at the top of her lungs.

Luckily, it was only the Sanzo party that heard her yelling and they all gathered to where she was. Gojyo didn't have to do anything, since she barged into his room first.

As soon as he was done scratching his head from falling off the bead from the wake up call, he got up and walked over to the others, just in time to hear that one of their friends didn't come back last night.

"I was afraid she wouldn't come back…" said Hakkai, with a worried tone.

"A youkai's work, huh?" Said Gojyo.

"Most likely," said Sanzo.

"Damn, she's the 20th this week, how many more people will disappear until the thing actually comes out?" The owner was pacing back in forth, worrying with panic.

"Don't worry, miss. We'll get her back, along with the other women and children," said Goku, trying to comfort her.

"While we're on the subject, did anything else happen besides these disappearances? Like any strange visitors or something?" Sanzo questioned her.

The owner put her fingers to her chin and rubbed it while thinking. "Well…the only thing I can think of is that, someone is about to open a new bar soon, and he recently came the same time as the disappearances have been accruing."

"Ahh…we'll go take a look then." Said Hakkai.

"Right, in the mean time, can we have some breakfast?"


End file.
